Characterizing and Modulating Neuroplasticity of the Adult Human Brain

Abstract

Neurons are highly specialized structures, are resistant to change, but are engaged in distributed networks that do dynamically change over the lifespan. Changes in functional connectivity, for example by shifts in synaptic strength, can be followed by more stable structural changes. Therefore, the brain is continuously undergoing plastic remodeling. Plasticity is not an occasional state of the nervous system but is the normal ongoing state of the nervous system throughout the lifespan. It is not possible to understand normal psychological function or the manifestations or consequences of disease without invoking the concept of brain plasticity. The challenge is to understand the mechanisms and consequences of plasticity in order to modulate them, suppressing some and enhancing others, in order to promote adaptive brain changes. Behavioral, neurostimulation, and targeted neuropharmacological interventions can modulate plasticity and promote desirable outcomes for a given individual.